77 Hurst Olds Prototype

[keith455]

I found this on archive.org and thought i'd put it here so it doesn't get lost on the internet.
The story of the 1977 Hurst/Olds Prototype


Lets go back to June 9, 1976. A meeting was held between Dale Smith from Oldsmobile and Hurst Olds representatives Jack Duffy, Dave Grob and Ted Louckes.
The Topic of the meeting:

"That we try to regain the Hurst Olds performance image with a 1977
Cutlass "S"Among the things proposed that day were a 403 engine with a marine camshaft, marine valve springs, a distributor with a quicker advance, performance calibrated carburetor, dual snorkel air cleaner and a single plane aluminum intake manifold from Holley. The Drive train was to include a Hurst Dual Gate Shifter, 11" 2800 stall torque converter, 3.08 axle ratio and a Turbo 400 transmission calibrated for firmer and higher RPM shifts. The chassis was to include FE2 suspension, Goodyear raised letter GT radial tires. The exhaust had to use a single catalytic converter, but talk of including parts from 1974 were mentioned so the owner could install a left hand system for duals. The car was also to include an aluminum hood and Hurst/Olds styling treatments and painted bumpers. Also mentioned was a AM/FM/CB radio with antenna to match. Not a bad start huh?
Dave Grob and the guys at Hurst must had been thinking about this car day and night, only 2 weeks later did he write Dale Smith from Oldsmobile saying the theme of this car should be "total" performance. Dave wanted the suspension to surpass the FE2 and provide handling similar to the "real" Pace Cars of '70, '72 and '74 . He suggested higher rate springs, larger diameter anti/roll bars, heavy duty valved shocks, performance front end alignment, and a lower body angle of attack, aluminum wheels, posi-traction, in-dash tach, hood scoop, chrome valve covers, heavy duty cooling, oversized brakes, harder control arm bushings,3.42 gears and a sport steering wheel. To give the car that "Hurst/Olds" look, Dave suggested a front spoiler and using screen for the grills, a Radar warning system and a vinyl half top. To make the current NASCAR drivers happy, producing a car with the rear side windows closed and plexiglass headlight covers would allow such items to be used in the racing circuit and the "underground engineers" at Oldsmobile had been testing such items in the wind tunnel with great results. Even though some of the things that were first proposed did not make it to the prototype this would of been the most performance oriented car of its day, not to mention the attention grabbing style that screams Hurst/Olds!!


While the guys were busy at Hurst trying to get a prototype car done, the guys at Oldsmobile were putting the ax to some of the proposed items, do you really think they would of let them have a radar detector? Oldsmobile said it wasn't good for their image. The "-30 body angle", aluminum wheels, aluminum hood and chrome valve covers were the first things to get dropped.
Racing bucket seats were considered but they were dropped in favor a Cutlass Salon reclining buckets and the Hurst Auto Stick II shifter was favored over the dual gate. The headlight covers were approved as long as they were shipped in the trunk and labeled "Not for street use". Painted bumpers were dropped in favor of good old chrome.
Bort Corporation was contacted and assigned the duties of producing the front and rear spoilers, sail panels to cover the rear side windows, headlight covers, driving lights, modified grills, a cold air induction system and a special tach housing which sat in the speedometer pod.
R&R Top Shop, Centerline MI, installed the vinyl half top and roof band.
T-tops were also installed but do to the roof line and room provided by the newly installed half top a custom set had to be cut smaller then those used on the 1975 H/Os.
November 9, 1976. 2,000 production vehicles have been tentatively scheduled to be produced and a few final changes were all that was left. The left over 1976 Prototype with a 350 cubic inch engine was brought in just to show what the 1977 Hurst/Olds would look like white and both it and the black car were treated to Hurst/Olds painted graphics, believe it or not but both cars were painted different on each side to give Oldsmobile 4 styles of stripes to choose from.
ITS SHOW TIME!!!!!
Please keep in mind, this car was made to be viewed from, Id say about 30 feet away, the stripes were a bit crude and the rear spoiler was nothing more the clay covered in fiberglass, the grills were mere concrete reinforcement screen from a company near the Hurst shop, even so when the car went into production and the prototype parts were really manufactured, it would only be a $900 dealer cost option.
Oldsmobile decided on the Hurst/Olds stripes that were painted on the passenger side of the black car. Jack Duffy planned on using the car at the Daytona 500 and it had to be ready by Feb. 14,1977, everything seemed fine, all that was left was a little painting, replace some weather strips, adjust the shifter, remove the tach (it covered up the turn signals) but fiber optics were planed to run through two holes in the housing.

[keith455]

2 posts. 1 was too long.
The Demise of the 1977 Hurst/Olds

Sometime in February 1977, Hurst Performance, Special Vehicles Division regretfully announced that there will not be a production Hurst/Olds for 1977.



"It would seem that the outstanding sales success of the Cutlass model
this year had left the production facilities at Olds Division building
Cutlass' to capacity and has no room for the requested 2,000 car build
of special H/O Cutlass "S" vehicles."

"We hope you enjoy the 1977 prototype as we certainly feel it's the finest edition we've ever produced"

Even though this car would never be a production vehicle Oldsmobile and Hurst released all the information to the public so anyone could convert a 1977 Cutlass "S" with over the counter production parts. Not wanting the 77 prototype to go to waste, Hurst called various Car magazines. Pictures and stories of the protptype were featured in at least 5 of them including:

Street Racer - Aug. 1977 "The Hurst/Olds, Roll Your Own"
Cars - Sept. 1977 "Once Is Not Enough, "Hurst Idea OF How To Warm Up A '77 Cutlass 403"
Car Craft - July 1977 "The Hurst/Olds You Can't Buy"

Super Stock - Oct. 1977 "Prototype Preview"
Street Cruisin - Oct. 1977 "The Car That Never Was"
The white prototype was sold and the new owner reportedly had three accidents, the last time totaling it.
The black prototype stayed at Hurst for a few years, used mostly for promotions and business trips. On Jan. 17, 1980 the black prototype was in a minor accident in which the front spoiler was wrecked and the header panel was replaced with one off a 1976 Cutlass Supreme. Then later in 1980 the black prototype was sent down the street to a Oldsmobile dealer and placed on their lot for sale, it ended up in the hands of a car collector in PA. and spent the next 13 years in a heated warehouse. The owner of the car had no plans on selling it and it came close to being forever "missing". When he met Kevin Low and got to talking about Oldsmobiles he realized
what a shame it would be for the 77 prototype to spend its life never to be seen again.
In 1993 Kevin purchased the car and started investigating the history. He contacted many people from Hurst and replaced the header panel to duplicate the original. Some of the documents from Hurst listed the vin number which matched the vin number on the door. The vin number on the dash was removed by Oldsmobile because it was an experimental car . A copy of the window sticker provided by the "Oldsmobile History Center" shows instead of being ordered by a dealer it was ordered by General Motors Corp. Oldsmobile Div. Engineering Car, Lansing MI.

Sometime in 1996, right after the Oldsmobile Cutlass Coupes 1973-1977 car club was formed , I was talking to then board member Jim Pedigo when the topic of the 1977 Hurst/Olds prototype was brought up, I had no clue such a car ever existed and the thought of me ever owning it never entered my mind, but we all have our dreams. Forward to 1998 and Harry Mager enters the picture, I could write a whole newsletter about Harry himself, this man loves finding rare Oldsmobiles, at the time I met him he had just purchased a 1973 Cutlass with 8900 miles on it, 4 speed, bench seat and spent its life covered in vasoline. Harry and I became great friends and one day when he mentioned knowing the owner of the 77 prototype. From then on, every now and then, Harry would mention that he thought the time was right to buy the prototype for a decent price, I jumped at the chance only to be let down. Now if you know Harry, you know he has a great sense of humor and more times then I can count he would tell me about a "Rare car" only to get my hopes up and watch me freak out when he would tell me it was just a joke. One day in late 1999 Harry started talking about the time being right to buy the prototype again, I just flat out told him if he can buy it right, just do it and ill send him a check the next day, when I arrived home from work the next morning my wife said that Harry had called the night before and all he said was "he has great news". The very next morning he had the check and a couple of days later he was e mailing me pictures of my new Hurst/Olds sitting in his driveway. Now to get it home! This was 2 weeks before Thanksgiving, there's no way I could be ready to go that coming weekend and the next weekend was the busiest driving weekend of the year so I had to wait 3 weeks until I could go get it, and then there's the weather factor, late November and im in northern Illinois and he is in New Jersey. The time had come, my friend Jim Viel had offered to go with me and use his Dodge dually diesel, we picked up a trailer and 17 hours later we were standing next to the prototype waiting for Harry to wake up (it was 6am), I had promised not to do anything to wake his wife up but after standing there 30 minutes I couldn't wait any longer, we still had a 17 hour drive home. I knocked on the door and heard the dog start barking, sorry Harry. We loaded the 77 on the trailer and spent a few minutes looking over Harry's new "toy" The 1978 Mid Engine Cutlass, blown 403, Im still mad at him for not starting it up and taking us for a ride. Now back to Illinois unload the car and get some sleep, sounds a lot simpler then it was, lucky for us the snow held off but we did get in a bad rain storm coming through Chicago.
Being part of a car club has its advantages, but when the letters and phone calls started coming in congratulating me, it really made me feel like part of a family, the response was overwhelming. I don't consider myself the owner of this car, I consider myself the cars caretaker for my generation.
There is a lot of history about this car, im sure there's some I may have missed, The Prototype was also written about in the books: "Oldsmobile Muscle Cars" and "The Hurst Heritage" (although the picture in Hurst Heritage is that of a replica), also featured in "B.O.P" - Nov 1993 "The Hurst that never was" and the Hurst Olds Club of America newsletter "Thunder&Lightning" Dec. 1989

Special Thanks to Dave Grob who was the Director of Public Relations at Hurst during the production of the 1977 prototype and has been a wealth of information.
Kevin Low, the former owner who was also a wealth of information.
Harry Mager, without him none of this would have been possible.
All the members from OCC for their support and kind words.
And of course John Zimmer for having the foresight to start a club for all of us Cutlass Coupe lovers.

Jeffrey F
DUKEOFBLUZ@xxxx.xxx

[77W30442]

they also found the 76 protyped . saved from the crusher as i heard it.
ron

[keith455]

Humm. any info on it?? I'll post it also. thanks

[77W30442]

Jeff Had Mentioned It I Believe When I Talked To Him About His 77. Also Read It Some Where Maybe On This List Or A Fwd Email From H/o List.
Ron

[ragz442]

WESSIES1BG [Bill G I believe] off the list emailed me stating he knows where the original car is and seen it. Said it was in rough shape but restorable. Was going to email me some pics but I never heard back. I've only seen 1 other 76 'S' body with t-tops and roof treatment, it's on Cardomain, I think the heading is "dealer special". Looks very similar to mine except the sail panel are made to look like a Supreme where mine is completely blocked like the prototype.

[ragz442]

Here's a pic of the cardomain car:
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/12/web/336000-336999/336446_4_full.jpg
Claims to be an original bb car with every option. This is definatly a rare one.
Mine for comparison:
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/12/web/684000-684999/684771_19_full.jpg
FWIW

[77W30442]

nice ride even if rear is to high
ron

[keith455]

Todd,
I like yours better. The blocked off window looks better IMO.

[sledhead2]

Todds car does not look like that right now : )

Well I am here Todd I stiil got a bunch of parts here waiting for you. Remember I got all the parts to put a/c back on the 76 H/O. I really think you need an A/C Car it is very nice on them hot days driving to lansing

[ragz442]

Yea Ron, definatly sits too high in the rear. Says it has an air pump under the hood I believe.

Thanks for the comps Keith. Like Dave said, It dosn't look like it does in the pics now, that's for sure. It really isn't in that bad of shape with the only through rust in the left quarter and drivers footwell. The t-tops did not leak? All the chrome and brightwork is in near perfect shape. I hope to start making some progress soon.

Dave, will be in touch for the parts whenever your ready.

[psquare75]

Air Pump? I bet he could run an impact off that air pump.
:rolleyes:

[sledhead2]

Todd, I am ready when ever you are, like I have said before they are here and not going anywhere till they are in your trunk, so do not sweat it.

[keith455]

More 76/77 H/O info from the list.
1976 Hurst Special Vehicles Brighton, MI.

There were a total of (3) Hurst Olds Proposals built and shown to
Oldsmobile that year.

One is black and has a 455 engine.
Another car is a white 350 car.
And last there is one 1976 Hurst Olds Proposal car still
outstanding
and I'm currently on the trail of it. I have drawings of it for it's
owner (if it isn't me) when it finally shows up.

1977 Hurst Special Vehicles Brighton, MI.

There were (2) 1977 Hurst Olds proposal cars shown in 1977 to
Oldsmobile in that year.

One 1977 Hurst Olds proposal was special ordered and built (black
403)
The other car was the old 1976 Hurst Olds Proposal (white 350).
And
it was updated to 1977 in appearance. It still retains a 1976 VIN#.

[ragz442]

Cool info. I wonder what the story is on the '76 that's still outstanding? There are things on my car that are mysterious. The top was definatly not done at Joe Shmoes trim shop. It's actually formed vinyl with foam pad that seems to be made for the roof, it has the correct H/O emblems in the proper spots, I was able to remove the vinyl top without damage. The roof is signed [under the vinyl] by "Mark". The t-tops don't have the chrome tabs near the center bar. The t-tops and vinyl roof treatment were supposably done at Hurst. The quarter windows were blocked from the outside with pop riveted sheetmetal. From the inside, the quarter windows were in place covered with saddle vinyl and smaller H/O emblems in the center. It was actually done quite well and looks exactly like the white '76 H/O prototype..........could it be the missing car????

[442MUCH]

1976 Hurst/Olds

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/76proto1.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/76proto2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/76proto3.jpg

[442MUCH]

This car is in Idaho (it was the last time the owner phoned me)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/336446_2_full.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/336446_5_full.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/1976ol7E1.jpg

[ragz442]

That bottom pic [with Linda] has been wallpaper on my computer for about a year now. Thought maybe it would give me some inspiration :D .

[442MUCH]

That bottom pic [with Linda] has been wallpaper on my computer for about a year now. Thought maybe it would give me some inspiration :D .

No BS. This car is better looking than the 1976 H/O and the Idaho 442 IMO.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/684771_19_full.jpg

[ragz442]

So what are you saying Ken, keep the way it is?

My man Dave [sledhead] hooked me up with a dualgate, console, top plate and cable last weekend, should be sweet. It had l/rods and a g body console when I bought it.

[442MUCH]

So what are you saying Ken, keep the way it is?

It's up to you Todd, but I really think that treatment on the car is fantastic. I love what you've done to it. You don't see a 76 442 everyday...you don't see one like that at all!:)

Hey, l/rods would look cool. The basic look of your car is very nice. Better than the 76 H/o prototype IMO.

[ragz442]

The l/rods are long gone :( . I sold them on ebay last summer to get the dual gate set up. I didn't like them that much and they just looked out of place with the g body console. I should have kept them though :confused: , they were mint and only sold for $300, that was everything too, console, top plate, cable. I had them listed on a few Olds sites but nobody jumped on them, the high bidder was real happy :o .

http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/12/web/684000-684999/684771_16_full.jpg

Oh, and thanks for the comps on my ride.

[keith455]

I like how your car looks. I like the blocked out windows and SS trim. It is confusing though having 442 and H/O on 1 car though. :)

[442MUCH]

The l/rods are long gone :( . I sold them on ebay last summer to get the dual gate set up.

Hey, I've got the dual gate set up on mine. I like it.:)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/Image083.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v417/vttedrm/Image082-1.jpg

[brad442]

Todd, I agree with Ken, I really like how your '76 442 looks. The roof with the t-tops and the blocked out windows are unique enough on their own. I installed the Dual Gate in my car back in '99 and I love it. The Dual Gate just seems to capture a bit more of a "muscle car" feel for these cars.

[ragz442]

Yea, after looking at pics of your guy's cars the last few years is what convinced me to go with the dualgate. I know they weren't available in 76-77 but they are "period correct". The l/rods were cool, but the DG fits the bill much better IMO.

Oh yea, you guy's are also the reason I have the rear spoiler and 442 badge in my grill. Not trying to be a copy cat but when you see something you like why not go for it. lol

[ragz442]

I like how your car looks. I like the blocked out windows and SS trim. It is confusing though having 442 and H/O on 1 car though. :)

Keith, that's kind of why I was going to do the H/O deal, but I'm still pondering. Thanks for the comps and input guys.

[PSU442]

hey brad -- what's that mounted on your center console?

[77W30442]

i have the story on the 77 jeff used to own in the jwo mag. the car is a 403 and sweet. we talked about the white 76 a few times it was found and not totaled as previously thought some one on one of the list knows the owner of the 76 car
ron

[ragz442]

hey brad -- what's that mounted on your center console?

Not to speak for Brad, but that's the same thing mounted in Kens console, it's a digital tach that was a H/O option[from 73-75 I believe]. Quite a rare item.

[77W30442]

actually it has an incomplete vin since it was a protype as stated in hurst heriitage and the article i have
ron

[442MUCH]

Not to speak for Brad, but that's the same thing mounted in Kens console, it's a digital tach that was a H/O option[from 73-75 I believe]. Quite a rare item.

yep! That's right. And they work.:D

[442MUCH]

Oh yea, you guy's are also the reason I have the rear spoiler and 442 badge in my grill. Not trying to be a copy cat but when you see something you like why not go for it. lol

Hey man, that's cool. I agree. If you like it, go for it.:)